The Shoe Project was founded by Katherine Govier five years ago in Toronto. Katherine’s vision was to improve the written and spoken English of immigrant and refugee women and give them a voice.The Shoe project holds workshops throughout Canada where immigrant women are coached by Canadian writers and theatre professionals. The women are provided with a platform where they share their stories of their arrival in Canada – through a pair of shoes.

Today, The Shoe Project holds performances in Halifax, Toronto, Calgary, Canmore, and Vancouver. CIWA has partnered with the Shoe project in Calgary for numerous years and, on January 21, 2018, The Shoe Project performed at the Studio Bell, National Music Centre in Calgary with several CIWA clients performing. The shoes in the picture represent the twelve woman and their unique immigration experience to Canada. The audience of 350 Calgarians including The Honorable Lois E. Mitchell attended the event and enjoyed an evening filled with rich experience, passion, humour, and fun, as the twelve immigrant women eloquently presented their immigration experiences of coming to Canada.

Thanks to the partnership between CIWA and The Shoe Project numerous CIWA clients have shared their shoe story.